So being the idiot that I am I forgot I was in 4hi and went to drive a few miles home. First turn was a uturn and obviously noticed immediately. Went to go shift back into 2wd but shifter was loose and knew immediately that the grommet on the underside had failed. So was only 3 miles from home so just drove it home making sure I didn't cut any tight turns figuring it was fine. Gave time for the car to cool down (wiring up my cb radio while I waited).

Then as it was getting dark I got underneath and went to fix the grommet issue. Quicky felt a bunch of grease and knew something was wrong. There was grease sprayed everywhere, the underside of the tub, on the transfer case etc. See below pic of where it seemed to blow out at the CV joint. So I am going to go ahead and replace the front drive shaft. With that I am curious what is a good replacement? OEM is around $750 but seems there are other options such as Spicer, Tom Woods that run around $500. I do have a 3.5" lift. Currently looking at a Rubicon Express drive shaft as well from 4wp as I can get one in relatively quickly so I won't have to drive around too much without a front drive shaft.

Thanks.....oh and yes I was able to put the jeep in neutral and put it back in 2wd as it rolled.

 

Teraflex makes a high-angle cv replacement joint that you can slap on your stock driveshaft, if you want to stay with it. (Or I think Crown makes a repair type kit, which will just fail like the stock one.)

If you want to go with a thinner aftermarket shaft, they all seem to be about the same quality, the difference is which joints you choose and if you want to do the flange/yolk swap or get an adapter. Lot of people like spicer joints. I have been running a Woods front shaft for about 6 years or so, no issues. Though I did swap to sealed joints a while back, as I am getting old and lazy and was getting annoyed with dropping the shaft to grease all the zerks...

 

x2 on tom woods I run them they work great!! Just dropped mine today to grease the fittings. T case side its four 7/16 bolts and if you change out the yolk its a 1" 1/8 socket. Pick up some black RTV and Red lock tight. Make sure you get a good seal on the yolk or you will be wiping up AT-4 fluid up off your garage floor when it leaks.

 

I went with the JE Reel shaft and new flanges as well. The new flanges will get you a degree or so less driveshaft angle as well.

 

Yh I'm a little confused here. Sorry as I am relatively new to this. So have been trying to do some research but still confused. Couple questions:

1) There are 1310 and 1350 options. Is this just the strength/thickness of the drive shaft? Also see the JE Reel has an option for 1311. Is it fine to go with say a 1310 and save the money over a 1350? Or is it just worth it to spend the say $200-$300 it seems to cost more for a 1350?
2) I was looking at a Rubicon Express CVO driveshaft that was $400 (plus need to get the transfer case yoke though) but then you have other options and differing price points. For instance these are ones I was looking at. What are the pros/cons of these vs each other:

Rubicon Express RE1883-365 Front 1311 CVO Driveshaft for 07-11 Jeep® Wrangler & Wrangler Unlimited JK | Quadratec
G2 Axle & Gear Driveshaft for 07-17 Jeep® Wrangler JK | Quadratec
J.E. Reel 31JK-24F J. E. Reel Front 1311 C.V. Driveshaft for 07-11 Jeep® Wrangler & Wrangler Unlimited JK with 4-6" Lift & Automatic Transmission | Quadratec
Tom Woods Front 1310 Drive Shaft for 07-17 Jeep® Wrangler & Wrangler Unlimited JK | Quadratec
Tom Woods Front 1350 Drive Shaft for 07-17 Jeep® Wrangler JK | Quadratec

Sorry just relatively new when it comes to certain things mechanically speaking.

 

If you plan on wheeling hard with a 37" to 40" tire, go with the 1350's. Otherwise, the 1310's should be fine. I would take a look at Adams driveshaft as well. Top notch product and excellent customer service.

 

Yh I have 33s right now and plan to go to a 35 but stopping there....I think. I don't plan on wheeling anything crazy in the near term as this is also my daily driver.

 

When you get a chance, spend a few minutes on Tom Woods website. There is a bunch of info in both the Jeep JK and the Tech Info areas that might help. Or it might just confuse you more.

 

I've actually starting looking at Adams and in particular this drive shaft. I feel it may be worth it to jump to a 1350 for peace of mind.

https://www.northridge4x4.com/fits/2...-cv-driveshaft

Good option?

 

Another option would be to visit a local driveline shop. They can usually beat the online retailers for price, service and availability.